


The Sparrow, The Wolf and The Crane

by tepidJudgement



Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: F/M, Multi, Polyamory, Slow Burn, Yakuza
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-05-24
Updated: 2017-05-24
Packaged: 2018-11-04 09:12:25
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,226
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10987857
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tepidJudgement/pseuds/tepidJudgement
Summary: During a snow felled night a wolf stumbled upon the nest of a Sparrow. The wolf, a natural predator saw this as an opportunity. But before the wolf could strike, a crane interfered between the predator and the prey. Mesmerized by her delicate features and beautiful wings. The wolf and sparrow vowed to marry the crane. But only one could do so, in return the two fought tooth and beak to be the crane's mate. But who would she have chosen? The gentle Sparrow who hasn't known true beauty until that moment? Or the hardened Wolf who has known nothing but loathing and hatred until her presence distracted him from his regrets. Though both craved the feelings of the Crane, she did not know who she chose. For she wanted them both, not just one.





	1. The Twinned Dragons

It was a cold night in Hanamura. The normal sounds of street life was no where to be heard. Only the ambient flicker of neon lights and the soft snow that fell overhead. Winter was finally coming around to the island country yet for as many snow felled winters, this one felt the coldest amongst them all.

The young master of the Shimada clan sat across his elders. Quietly, obediently. No words were exchanged between the older men and the boy who was covered in the blood of his kin. It ran through him cold, dry. The breath that shook as his rattled body tried to gasp for air. Justifying his reasons. Any at all. He was to be their master after all, and they were his elders. He had to do what they said.

Yet that didn't make killing his younger brother hurt any less.

Genji was always a free spirit. A sparrow, their father would call him. Master Shimada never played favorite amongst the boys. Hanzo, the elder who's quiet and watchful like a wolf on the hunt. And the younger Genji, whose spirit was carefree as a bird and whose love life was just like one. They got along, they cared for each other. But when their father became sick, that's when things changed. Hanzo was no longer as lax as he were before. he became hardened, burdened with the responsibilities left for him by their father. The heir to the Shimada Clan. He had to set an example for all who was in it, regardless for how young he was. Genji, however. Couldn't bear the death of their father. In a way he became more careless in his actions. Perhaps it was coping but Genji never spoke of it. A girl every night, he was always off at the arcade in the mornings and avoided training with the elders because of it.

"Shape up your brother Genji or else there will be consequences." They said. Hanzo cared for Genji greatly. He remembered when they were younger and they'd go to the pond outside the temple to catch tadpoles. How Genji leaned a bit too far into the water and fell in. It was Hanzo who had to fish him out. And though he was laughing, he also started crying. "I couldn't breathe." Genji said, through tears as his brother hugged him. "Then you must come up for air. I will teach you how to swim tomorrow."

"Father left us the responsibility of the Shimada Clan to us. To share. You must take this seriously, Genji." It started off as a normal, gentle conversation. Trying to coax his younger brother to take up some of the burden so he wouldn't have to shoulder it all.

"You may think that, but father left it for you. I do not want to take any part in what the Shimada Clan has planned." It was a blunt response, but it was the truth. Genji didn't want to take leadership. He wanted to continue his comfortable life. For better or for worse.

"...Genji this is no debate, you have to do it-"

"Or what? What will the elders do to me if I say I do not want to lead the Shimada Clan?"

Hanzo was struck silent. He didn't want it to come to this. In fact, he prayed it wouldn't. The words they told him, the elders that is. Was to shape Genji up or face consequence. The consequences he did not want to think about, but their words rang like cicadas in the summer nights. "If Genji refuses, then he is no longer considered of Shimada blood. You must dispose of him."

Dispose of him.

He had to murder his kin. His brother.

"Genji, you don't understand what is on the line-"

"Oh I know perfectly well brother. But I refuse to take part in the Shimada clan no more." The younger hissed, words like venom as eyebrows lowered into a glare. He didn't quite have his reasons as to why he refused his fate but he knew it was for that reason that he refused at all.

"Genji--" Hanzo was desperate, there was no way he could murder Genji in cold blood. Not for the Shimada clan that is.

"The conversation is  _done_ ,Hanzo." Genji spat, turning as he began making his way to his room.

Words couldn't reach the elder's mouth. He couldn't do it. Genji meant everything to him. As his last remaining blood relative. Though the Shimadas were all related that is, Genji was the last left between him, their mother, and their father. Lady Shimada died shortly after Genji was born. Complications with childbirth. Hanzo mourned their mother for months before he could resume his training. But Genji never knew her.

"Hanzo-niisan, what was Kaa-san like?" The younger boy asked. It was a brisk autumn's day, three days after Genji's sixth birthday. Hanzo sat quietly outside the temple next to his brother. A quiet hum reverbing from his throat. "Kaa-san... Kaa-san was nice, she cared about me and sang me songs to sleep. She was the first to tell the story about the dragons. Before Tou-san started telling them. She was... Really excited to meet you, we made so many preparations for your arrival but..." His words fell off quietly, earning a frown from the younger brother.

"...Kaa-san is smiling at us from heaven, she's glad to see we get along. She was afraid I would be jealous of there being another baby in the house." Genji blinked, scooting closer to his brother. "Why did she think you would be jealous?" Hanzo glanced away slightly, scratching at his cheek slightly. "Uhm, well, I really liked the attention Tou-san and Kaa-san gave me, as well as the elders. So when they said they were having another baby. I sort of cried and made a fit." Genji frowned loudly and slapped his hands on his knees. Did he cause his brother so much grief before even being born? "But that's okay," Hanzo interrupted. "Because when I first saw you in Kaa-sans arms. You smiled so goofy it made me laugh for five minutes." Genji gasped, glaring at the older boy. "Hanzo! That's mean!" The elder brother laughed, soon being joined by the younger.

Would he suffer the same fate if he shown insubordination? What would happen to him if he were to not kill Genji? The lump that formed in his throat never seemed to swallow as he slowly drew his sword. There was no avoiding it, the elders were watching. Kill him Hanzo, Kill him.

"Brother?" Genji paused.

There was silence. Then blood. Coughing, crying, screaming.

Hanzo dropped the blood stained sword on the ground, looking down at the bleeding corpse of his brother. Tears streamed down his cheeks as he tried desperately to wipe them away. It was for the good of the clan, they couldn't let him leave so easily. The punishment is always death. He had to do it for the clan.

Flinching at the hand that found it's way to his shoulder, he looked up to see one of the elders stand before him.

"Rise, Hanzo. You've done your clan well."

Looking back at the corpse of his brother, it didn't feel like he did well.


	2. The Fallen Crane

"Wake up Hibiki."

A young girl of twelve stirred as she rose from her futon. The man above her, Hiroshi, was to train her for the day. It was odd to think that Yakuza would kidnap and train children to do their bidding but that's exactly what the Hagiwara clan decided to do. Hibiki Kaseru had an interesting relationship with the syndicate, however. It wasn't just happenstance that she was kidnapped by them. Kaori Kaseru, her mother, had some dealings with the clan.

Four months after Hibiki's fifth birthday, her father, Akifumi was supposed to come home. Hibiki and her brother Kazumi waited excitedly with their mother. Balloons and banners ready in their quiet countryside home. Their house was a lot more traditional than most homes in Japan, but they didn't mind. The old house was refreshing to the family, having lived with technology all their lives, it was a nice change of pace having to do things manually instead of having machines doing it for them. They waited since morning, well into afternoon and soon into the night. Finally the door to their modest home rattled slightly, causing a slight raise in anxiety for all of them. It's been so long since Kaori has ever seen her husband, and maybe for the first time her children could see their father. Kazumi and Hibiki were born a year before the crisis, so when Akifumi left for war, the two infants never had a chance to really know their dad.

However when Kaori slid open the door, she was met with the general of the Japanese Armed Forces.

"O-Oh, hello. We were hoping Akifumi would come here himself."

"...Yes, about your husband..." The man glanced over to see two bewildered kids. Motioning their mother to the side, all the twins could do was sit and wait.

Hibiki heard bits and snippets of their mother. Her voice wasn't the loudest in the world, but in this moment it was almost like that was the only thing she could hear.

"What do you mean?" "No, you're lying. He promised." "When we called he said he was fine! What do you mean he- he-?!" Hibiki could hear her mother crying.

"We're sorry Kaseru-san. But your husband... During a celebratory party for the crisis's end... An extremist group, Null Sector, attacked the base. He... He was one of the dozens to perish in that attack."

She couldn't believe her ears. Kaori covered her mouth, trying to muffle her cries which worried and worried her children. Hibiki and Kazumi glanced at each other before making way to their mother's side. Frowns and furrowed eyebrows as they try to figure out what was wrong.

"Here's... Here's what we managed to salvage. We thought you would like it back."

Being handed a cracked picture frame of her, Akifumi, and their at the time infant children, all Kaori could do was cry.

They were a small family. A mother and her two kids. Though with growing troubles and lack of convenience, the three had to move closer to civilization. Hanamura, a busy city with thriving arcades and a rumored Yakuza that controls most of the province.

They lived on the fourth story in a apartment complex. They had little things in their home, but it was home for now.

"When will we go back to the big house?" Hibiki would ask her mother from time to time. With a sorrowful smile, the woman would caress her child's cheek. "We will soon, my dear Crane, we will soon."

The story of the Crane who returns a favor was a story Hibiki loved a lot. A story her mother would tell her every night to help her sleep. It talked of a crane caught in a hunter's trap. An old man takes pity on it and releases it back to the wild. Soon after a young woman in the midst of a snowstorm approaches the home of the old man and his wife, asking to stay until the storm brushes over. The woman asks to be the daughter of the elderly couple and begins weaving cloths that makes the couple rich. However it soon reveals that this young woman was the crane the man rescued before.

Hibiki liked to pretend she was the crane from the story. Often making costumes and even folding origami ones that she would leave around her room. Her mother cherished every crane the girl made, keeping it in special places amongst the master bedroom.

It was a quiet summers night as the family ate dinner together. Lately Kaa-san has been buying a lot more stuff than usual, Hibiki thought to herself. At first they struggled for money but suddenly they've been living comfortably once more. Which prompted the question that always hurt her mother whenever asked.

"Kaa-san," Hibiki began. "When will we return to our old house?"

The woman remained quiet. Setting down her bowl and chopsticks with a sigh. Another downhearted smile spread across her lips as she moved to sit next to her child, holding her in her arms.

"Well, perhaps soon Hibiki. But I have to make a lot of money before we're able to move again." That was enough for Hibiki, for now.

Though their lives were finally turning up for the better, tragedy struck them.

Late at night, an officer knocked on the door of their humble apartment. Waking up the family, the two kids peaked from their bedroom door as their mother confronted the officer. They accused her of dealings with the local Yakuza, which Kaori declined on multiple occasions. However according to the officials, they had proof of her dealings. Though not convince by their claims, it turned into an all out fight. Leading to a violent arrest that scared both the kids.

"Grab her children, we'll have to admit them to a foster home." Unknown to what was happening and struck with fear, Kazumi grabbed his sister's hand and ran between the legs of the men. Running down the stairs and out the front door, they hid in an alley way, where the cops looked for them. Their mother, Kaori, screamed for them in desperation, terrified of where her kids ran. She couldn't tell herself what was worse, her kids being given to a foster home or having them live as homeless orphans. Though with no time to find them, the police and their mother were gone and the two were left in a dark alley way while ran poured overhead.

Softly, she wept. Hibiki wept and cried as her brother tried to console her. They had no idea how to live on their own and Hibiki had been babied all her life. She couldn't survive and neither could her brother.

Finding an old box under some shutters, the two took refuge in it, staying close as to not lose each other and preserve heat.

When Hibiki woke up the next day, her brother was gone. No where to be found. She ran and screamed looking for him, but she had no idea where he went.

Left alone, the girl had to teach herself how to survive in the streets.

"Kaseru, snap out of it." The man hissed as Hibiki coughed, pushing herself up from the ground. Hiroshi swung his Bo at her clean in the gut yet she made no attempt to block or dodge it. "You're going soft. Stand up, try again."

They found her when she was ten, a year after being left on the streets. She learned much since then, how to wield a knife, how to sneak and pick pocket others, and generally what foods are safe to eat. During a cold morning, Hiroshi Sumida and Masahiro Hagiwara were patrolling the area, a city they fought for power against the Shimadas. When they found the young girl, before they could even react, she struck first. Stabbing Hiroshi in the gut. Rather than killing her, they decided to take her and train her to hone those raw skills she appeared to have.

"Again, Kaseru. Focus god dammit." The red head spat, grabbing the girl by her hair and lifting her up. "If you don't focus on your training, you'll never be able to take out the Shimadas. Now try again."

Training like this would go on for hours and hours until finally Hiroshi was pleased with her performance. In which then she was given time to relax before being sent on her mission. She wasn't always this soft, she used to be quite cocky the third year she was an assassin. Though at first she was scared and timid, Hiroshi managed to break her and shape her to be a relentless killer. Nobody would expect a child to be an assassin after all. When she lost her eyes, her forearms and right leg, her arrogance was crushed and she became a lot more reserved. She was augmented with mechanical parts, cybernetic eyes and ligaments. She became a cyborg, part machine. She saw this as an upgrade if anything. Better, more efficient.

After that botched mission, she vowed to seek the Shimadas with such persistence and accuracy that they would never stand a chance.


	3. Lone Wolf

"Explain again why I must train to defend myself instead of my guards?" Hanzo asked, wiping sweat from his forehead. There was quiet before an older man began speaking. "Because, they will not be there for you every time. If you find yourself without a guard you must be able to defend yourself. We cannot have Lord Shimada dying so soon, should we?" The man eyed the young adult, causing him to avoid eye contact. For being master of the clan, it sure didn't feel like he was. If anything, he felt like a puppet. Following the orders of the Shimada elders.

Training like this continued well into his adulthood. Though only in his early twenties, Hanzo already had his doubts about the clan. Ever since the incident with Genji, he has felt regret, sorrow for what he's done. But he had to be there for his clan. It was his fate to do so. Hanzo had many unresolved feelings he had to bottle up and swallow for the good of his clan, He wasn't his own person at this point. He was the front man of the syndicate, he couldn't show weakness. The elders forbade it.

Many nights were spent restless because of this. Waking up at twilight and roaming the temple to ease his mind. Soft wind blowing against his chilled cheeks while cherry blossom petals dance in the breeze. Through his quiet trance he was able to pick up on movement, however. Everyone was asleep and nobody patrolled the farthest out skirts of the temple. They didn't have reason to really, no assassins attempted to go near Genji's shrine. Hanzo would visit it during brief moments of depression and uncertainty. Trying again and again to atone for his brother's death. Though sometimes it brought ease to his mind, other times remain just as it was, an angry mixture of lamentation and mourning.

Sitting outside his brother's shrine, Hanzo stayed motionless. Meditating to ease his flurried mind. Yet he couldn't find this peace due to the feeling of someone watching him. Glancing around he didn't see any guards. Perhaps it was his imagination. Closing his eyes slowly, Hanzo began to hum an old tune he remembered from his youth.

Perhaps that training did do him some good. Because in almost an instance, Hanzo's arm raised to block an incoming attack by an assassin. His reflexes must of become sharper, but now wasn't the time to marvel at his progress. He had to assess the killer at hand.

Reaching for his bow, Hanzo began to pull a sonic arrow from his quiver. In an instant, however the assassin disappeared from his sights, which made the sonic arrow more crucial than ever, especially during the night. The moon rain high above the temple as Hanzo sought out his perpetrator.

"Come out you coward!" Hanzo hissed, glancing around for the attacker. However he could not see them. Where did they go? Did they run away? Though his answers rang through his head at alarming speeds, it was enough to distract him from the incoming projectile. A fan. But not just any fan. A fan extended with spikes. It breezed by his cheek, leaving but a small scratch. Turning quickly and shooting off an arrow, Hanzo barely missed the assailant. The assassin jumped, flipping over Hanzo and landing by the doorway to retrieve their fan. This Shimada was harder to kill than they first fought.

Tearing the blade out of the splintered wood, the assassin turned to face their target, glowing purple eyes illuminating their delicate features. They had to been no older than him, he thought. But wonderings and questions were cut short when the male had to once again move as to not be split in half with such a peculiar weapon.

The crystal moon overhead illuminated the two fighting figures, sweat reflecting the polar light. The fight had been much more intense than they anticipated, similarity in intensity and fighting expertise, they almost matched each other.

Stopping on their heel, the assailant turned, hurling themselves towards Hanzo, their blade at the ready. They will kill him, they will take down the master of the Shimada clan. It was their mission, their moment. Avoiding all but a scratch upon his cheek, the young master glared sharply at the other, pulling back and arrow and letting it sail towards the other. It missed by mere centimeters, causing the other to laugh. However they weren't laughing for long when they noticed the small smirk that drew across the Shimada's face.

"Scatter."

Glowing lines of blue surrounded them, inflicting cuts all over, but never piercing. Perhaps it was luck, or no purpose, but they knew they had to be careful now. 

They were hard to spot, from Hanzo's perspective. Small yet lethal, like a hidden blade. But what gave their position away so easily was the paint glow of purple eyes. Eyes that stared at him like ravens in the dead of night. Pulling back a sonic arrow, the ting of it's sonar resonated around the other. A panic filled their being, glancing around at the blue shockwave their artificial vision could pick up. They had to run quickly, or else they'd be at a disadvantage.

Arrows went flying, each either barely scraping them or nearly piercing their cybernetics. It shook them to the core, how close to death they were. They prided themself on being the best. The top of the top, the one sent to take out the Shimadas, no doubt had to be the best among Chiyoko's arsenal yes? Yet here she was, heaving and shaking as they could still feel the arrows brushing and tearing along their skin.

He was disoriented, now was their chance. He lost them in the midst of fire, raining arrows who's shocking light blinded him for a mere moment.

Reaching for another arrow, Hanzo realized he had only one left. Drawing the bow back, he turned to meet the throat of his aggressor, who froze in it's spot with the blade near inches from his neck.

"...Who are you?" Hanzo hissed, glaring slightly. Their purple eyes were- irregular. Vibrant yet unnatural. A yellow, glowing ring around the iris like something an Omnic would have. Yet the skin around their eyes was most definitely organic. What-- was it?

Shallow breathing was all the killer responded with. The pressure of the arrow threatening to sever their neck from their body. There was silence, nothing but the breathing between the two and the hollow wind that blew between them.

"I am nobody." Was all they replied. Hanzo's eyes widened slightly. A woman. Though one, she was quite the skilled martial artist, in fact she was rather dangerous as is. Yet something in those vacant eyes said something. Tales of unrest and uncertainty. Similar to himself. Though in this moment she could take the initiative with him distracted, something stopped her hand from taking the strike. Was it pity? Self doubt? She couldn't tell. She glanced away, furrowing her eyebrows as she tried to do something, anything.

The male weighed his options. He could take the shot and kill her, having one less assassin to worry about. Or he could spare her life. Hanzo has already taken an unnecessary life, though it would of been justified, he could sense a disturbance in the girl that made it clear that she was unsure of what to do with herself. Relieving the arrow, Hanzo slowly lowered his weapon. The girl follow suit and collapsed, sitting on the ground.

"Why? You could of taken the shot." She mumbled. Hanzo sighed, sitting down next to her and setting the bow off to the side. "Something troubles you."

"...I'm not quite sure if I want to kill you. Though I've trained for this moment to kill you and your brother Genji, it seems someone has beaten me to your brother. But I've heard the stories." It was a blunt response that caused more discomfort than Hanzo would like, but at least she was honest.

"I am sorry you had to do that." She mumbled quietly, causing Hanzo's shoulders to relax and his expression to drop slightly. The two remained in silence for a while, watching the moon wane overhead.

"You are not the first assassin sent to kill me, but you are the first to spare me." He spoke quietly. The assassin glanced over slightly, debating her words carefully. "But you spare mine. If it had not been for that act of kindness, I would of definitely severed your head."

The assassin soon stood up, picking up her weapons and began to depart. Hanzo watched as she climbed up walls and through trees, giving her one last nod.

"Hibiki Kaseru. Remember my name, this will not be the last time we meet."

"I do not doubt that at all." And with that, she was gone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> a lot shorter than i would of liked, but i'm not very good at fighting scenes ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯
> 
> EDIT: i rewrote the fighting scene a bit, hopefully it's a lot more enjoyable to read


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